Archdruid
Background Alexander did not come into the world quickly enough to ever meet his father, Peter Julius, sole-owner of the Advanced Military Ordinance Corporation (AMOC). Nor would he ever meet his mother, Lady Fey Julius. The British public never realized that the Julius family were two of the their most secretive and most powerful defenders. His father served in the guise of the marksman Amok, one of Majestic’s most legendary (and short-lived) combat leaders. His mother was the second heroine to bear the name of Fae. They both died, alone and relatively un-mourned, in a simple automobile accident. Alexander was born by Caesarian section, while his mother lay in a deep coma. In the end, despite their great powers, both were as mortal as anyone else. A lesson that Alexander has never forgotten. Instead, the youngster was raised by his uncle James, a man known to the rest of the world as Druid. By necessity, his early life was a secluded one. Like his mother, Alexander displayed a number of paranormal abilities almost from birth, the direct result of his heritage as a half-human descendant of the capricious and often-cruel being’s known as the Faerie. His guardian faced no easy task in keeping the boy "civilized" and sane. Often, he would take the form of an animal, a falcon or a large dog, for many days, speaking to no one or wreaking havoc on weather patterns by summoning storms or causing lightning to leap from the earth. Indeed, it seemed at first that he was more Faerie than man, caring little for anyone or anything beyond his own selfish needs. At times he almost seemed incapable of recognizing that other people had needs of there own and that the world was not simply his plaything. Eventually however, his tutors helped him to master the contradictions of his faerie and human blood and managed to instill in him the same morals values as possessed by his parents. The same love and respect for life, all life. No longer would Alex simply rip open the guts of some young animal merely to peak inside. He would restrict his shape changing to beasts whose anatomies he knew and had studied from books. He came to study meteorology and ecology, so he would realize and repair the occasional damage that his manipulations of weather and the elements would cause. Especially, he came to realize that summoning bolts of lightning to fry small animals for fun was inherently wrong and unethical. Even so, he mostly followed these morals out of habit, not because he understood they were right. He hadn’t yet come to understand why he must act that way, only that he should and that to act otherwise was inherently wrong. It wasn’t until Alex was thirteen that the young boy’s guardians finally decided that the he had overcome the cruelty and capriciousness of his Faerie blood enough to have his first taste of normal society. These expeditions were often carried out under relatively controlled conditions, using small villages and out of the way places to gradually introduce the youngster to the world of humanity beyond what he had seen on TV screen’s. It took many years, but by the time he was eighteen Alex had finally begun to understand what it was to be human. That year, he began attending university at Oxford, not realizing that he was all the time under the observation of MI5 agents. These men and women were sent to ascertain whether he was truly a potential asset, as Druid now claimed, or whether he should be eliminated as a potential threat. Instead, these agents watched with growing fascination as the boy grew into a man, learning to hide his confusion and to adapt, to blend in and associate with the human beings around him. One of these agents, a young recruit by the name of Emily Watson, was tasked with the job of befriending him. Instead, she –and surprisingly even Alex- fell in love. This revelation demonstrated itself when a "set-piece" encounter with some MI5 agents went terribly wrong. The young couple were in fact attacked not by agents, but by real thugs. Alex responded by using his powers to protect Emily and surprised the entire MI5 contingent by deliberately holding back his strength, striving only to capture the thugs without wounding anyone else–even random passer’s by. Emily was wounded in the encounter, but Alex himself managed to save her life, calling up a small bolt of lightning, just powerful enough to restart her heart. Alex was not particularly concerned when Emily confessed her role to him the next day, while Agent One and other members of MI5 watched, eager to see how he would react. Instead of falling into the expected rage however, Alex simply asked if her feelings for him had been faked as well. When she said no, Alex simply scratched his head and stated, "I fail to see the problem." Not long afterwards, a relieved-looking Druid paid a visit to the youngster at his Studio Flat in Oxford; with him was a man Alex had never met. Agent One. While Emily stood nearby, Agent One and Druid explained that Emily and the other MI5 Agents had been sent to test Alex, physically and mentally, for his suitability as a future member of Majestic. They explained that Alex would have a chance to give something back to the country that had raised and protected him, much as his parents had before him. Taking Emily by the hand, he led her off to a side-room where the young couple discussed the matter in private. Solemnly, Alex agreed, calling himself Gwrydion after a long forgotten Celtic deity of Magic, Music and Song, Alex eventually changed this to Archdruid at Emily’s insistence on the grounds that nobody else understood the reference, or could pronounce it correctly. For the last six years, Alex has acted as Druid’s successor within Majestic. He is the team’s mystical and paranormal specialist. When it comes to investigating magical and demonic cabals, retrieving and identifying powerful lost artifacts Alex is the man to call on. When not practicing the mystic abilities of his faerie heritage or reading up on ancient texts, Alex takes great pleasure in confusing his teammates with the obligatory mystic mumbo-jumbo and enigmatic comments. Personality and Motivations Alex has long since become used to the customs of human society while not yet fully understanding a few of them. To this day, for example, Alex does not quite grasp why it is seemingly important to be seen wearing the "right" kind of clothes on any given occasion. On the other hand, he does at least know WHAT to wear when. Even so, fashion causes him no end of confusion. Why should he have to wear designs that other people tell him he should wear rather than those he would pick for himself? Every now and then, he permits himself to wear white socks with his tuxedo, just to observe people’s reactions. However, with regards to most things, Alex comes across as a perfectly normal, intelligent man, albeit an occasionally eccentric one. He has come to embrace human emotion, but in a disciplined way, being careful to keep his otherwise overwhelming Fey emotions well in check. Although seemingly a normal adult, he is prone to making confusing statements and asking "obvious" questions that people can’t quite seem to answer with anything other than "just because." In this regard, even at twenty-four years of age, Alex still looks out upon the world with a child’s eyes. Although he normally comes across as a serious, if charming, individual, he has a wickedly cheerful ( and sometimes cruel) sense of humor. He’s prone to using this as a means of displaying his affection and can be extremely unpredictable at times. However, this manifests itself more as a sudden urge to conjure Emily a thousand red roses than anything sinister or reckless. He does however, have a confusing tendency to spend hours in meticulous planning, only to say "to hell with it" and throw said plan out the window. A predilection that completely irritates his teammates. Quote "If we don’t stop them now, they’ll use the Mystical Scepter of Shalhan to summon forth a bi-lateral, multi-elemental, quasi-mystical vortex to the plane of Gehenna!" (Said with a wide grin!) Powers and Abilities Aside from his in-depth knowledge of the mystical world, learned at the feet of the hero Druid himself, Alex has inherited in full the mystical powers of his mother, Fae. While not so powerful as his mother and grandmother, due to the dilution of his {Faerie] bloodline, his childhood instruction by Druid has led to his control and understanding of these powers being far more skillful and refined. He relies less on raw-power and more on finesse than his predecessors ever did. His command of (he would say symbiosis with) the natural world is almost unparalleled in the present day. Alex is capable of manipulating weather, calling storms and lightning from the skies and the earth, dispelling other "unnatural" magical effects (the ones that manipulate or defy nature rather than working with it) and summoning, speaking with and seeing through the eyes of animals. The very Earth itself will respond to his requests and shield him from harm while strong and sudden winds will deflect projectiles aimed at him and blast his enemies across a room or a street. In addition to this, his Faerie blood grants him some protection from the elements and, although he has yet to live long enough to notice, drastically slows the natural aging process. His mastery of the natural world protects him from extremes of heat and cold and from the harshest effects of weather. It is almost as if the natural world itself loves and cherishes Alex like a son, and will respond to his needs and requests as he asks it. Finally, Alex also has a very limited ability to change his shape into that of a variety of higher animal life, mammals and birds. At present, he can assume the form of a Peregrine Falcon, a Bottlenose Dolphin, a house cat of indeterminate breeding and an Alsatian dog. Appearance Archdruid's appearance is singularly remarkable. His hair is as dark green as jungle vegetation and his green eyes seem to reflect multiple points of light. Out of costume he tends to wear whatever clothes are most appropriate –but they are almost always stylish and designer made. He has an athletic build and is almost astonishingly good looking. Fans of old movies often compare him to a young Tom Cruise. He has an athletic build and a graceful, almost ethereal way of moving that tends to stick in people’s minds. He often wears a slightly amused, almost serene smile. The kind that implies Alex knows something the rest of the world doesn’t. However, even when dressed normally there is something undeniably "otherworldly" about Alex. It’s not something most people can put their finger on, but it’s there nonetheless. Many people do not feel comfortable around him, no matter how good-looking and charming he can become. In Heroic guise Alex tries to downplay his mystical nature somewhat, wearing only a black armored bodysuit and a dark green cloak to obscure his face that he pulls up only before entering combat. Under this hooded cloak he also wears a "masque" style mask, one that covers only the area around his eyes and nose. This is also dark green and is designed to resemble a pair of leaves. He completes the assembly with a short, black dress cane with a golden bunch of mistletoe on the handle, his sole concession to druidic zymology. His boots, belt and gloves are also dark green. Category:Characters Category:British Characters Category:British Heroes Category:Male Characters Category:Male Heroes Category:Mystics Category:Heroes